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This year, NYU employee contributions to the Combined Campaign, which is held annually from November through January, raised $100,000 for the NYU Community Fund, which gave grants to 61 community-based organizations.&nbsp; An additional nearly $30,000 was raised for the United Way of New York City. &nbsp;&nbsp;The University’s T.G. White Fund generated a further $28,000 in monies for 15 community-based organizations, and NYU’s Skirball Center for the Performing Arts generously donated $13,000 raised after Hurricane Sandy to seven local organizations which were directly affected by the super-storm.

“The grant funding comes not from the University itself, but from hundreds of NYU employees, each of whom believes in the important work being done by these organizations every day,” said Bill Pfeiffer, director of the Office of Civic Engagement of NYU’s Combined Campaign. “The Campaign’s Coordinators give the program life, while a core of volunteers reads through scores of proposals to make funding recommendations. Consequently there are no overhead costs; all administrative expenses are covered by NYU, and so every dollar contributed by our employees goes directly to the neighborhood organizations.”

The annual NYU Combined Campaign is a workplace charitable giving program whereby NYU faculty, staff, and administrators can contribute direct support to either the United Way of NYC or to the NYU Community Fund.&nbsp; The Community Fund then awards grants to local nonprofit organizations working to improve lives and communities throughout Lower Manhattan.

The Community Fund grants are a unique component of the University’s support for local non-profits. The missions of the Community Fund recipient organizations are as diverse—and as vital—as: encouraging at-risk young people to stay in school; providing services for the elderly; feeding the hungry; supporting projects for the visually impaired or persons with HIV/AIDS, cancer, heart disease, and other health concerns; and sustaining programs promoting literacy, tutoring, and tenants’ rights.

“NYU feels special pride in making these awards, because they reflect a very personal initiative by NYU employees to benefit others in our community,” said Lynne P. Brown, Senior Vice President for University Relations and Public Affairs. “Resources are sharply focused to alleviate specific needs we see every day, and the results are just as vivid and rewarding to us all.”

Since 2001, one outstanding organization each year has received a distinctive $5,000 grant in memory of the former Community Fund staff director, Thom Fluellen, whose spirit and enthusiasm for this community was an inspiration to countless others. This year, the award went to Project Renewal.

Founded in 1967, Project Renewal empowers homeless men and women struggling with addiction and/or mental illness to rebuild their lives with renewed health, homes, and jobs. Project Renewal's comprehensive and innovative approach combines healthcare, addiction and mental health treatment, employment services, and housing to ensure clients remain in permanent homes and become productive members of their communities.

“The $5,000 Thom Fluellen Award will help support our groundbreaking mobile medical programs - MedVan, StreetSmart, LifeLine and CareVan - which connect chronically homeless New Yorkers with ongoing health care,” said Mitchell Netburn, president & CEO of Project Renewal. "The award is a wonderful endorsement of our mission to improve the health of homeless men and women with complex needs who face multiple barriers to accessing high quality health care."

“As of this year, the NYU Community Fund celebrates its 30th year of operation, proud to have awarded more than 1,600 grants totaling more than $2.5M to community groups since the program’s inception,” said Pfeiffer. “We look forward to many more years to come.”

The NYU Combined Campaign is an employee-based fundraising campaign, in which full-time administrators, faculty, and staff provide financial support to the United Way of NYC and the NYU Community Fund. Since its inception in 1982, the NYU Community Fund has awarded over $2.5 million to nonprofit organizations near NYU campuses. Students may also take part semester specific internships to gain valuable nonprofit work experience through the Community Fund Internship Program.

*The T.G. White Fund was established by long-time Greenwich Village resident Theodore Greeley White, who died in 1913. He left his estate to NYU for the support of charitable Greenwich Village organizations which aid young people. The T.G. White Fund is administered by the NYU Office of Civic Engagement.